review – Today, we take a step back from all fantasies smart watch and fitness trackers, focusing on classic timepieces, Pioneer Chronograph Men’s Watch from Copenhagen Nordegren.
What is it?
The Nordgreen Pioneer Chronograph is a 42mm men’s chronograph featuring a stopwatch with a large second and minute subdial, a second subdial, a date window and a minimalist dial in Danish design.
What’s in this box?
- Nordgreen Pioneer Chronograph
- Additional bracelet links
- manual
- 24 months warranty card
- Certificate of Authenticity
Hardware Specifications
- Danish design by Jakob Wagner for a timeless look
- Case Thickness: 11.9mm
- Case width: 42mm
- Case Material: 316L Stainless Steel
- Case Color: Silver/Rose Gold/Gun
- Dial Color: White
- Glass: Domed Sapphire Crystal
- Movement: Japanese Quartz
- Strap width: 20mm
- Strap: 3-Link
- Strap Color: Gunmetal/Silver/Rose Gold
- Interchangeable shoulder straps: yes
- Waterproof: Up to 5 ATM (rainproof)
Design and Features
I’ve been collecting watches for a few years now, and now I’m starting to appreciate the simple pleasures of a well-designed timepiece. There really is something to be said for a fine-tuned analog watch, whether as a fashion statement to adorn your wrist or strictly as a time-measuring tool.
Nordgreen’s Pioneer was my first Watch With any type of chronograph function, it’s fun to find ways to combine the convenience of a stopwatch on your wrist. I think it’s best to focus on both design and functionality.
design
The Nordgreen Pioneer chronograph dial is heavily influenced by the minimalist design of Switzerland and Denmark. It reminds me of other watch designs that Braun, Bulova and Nomos have seen, to name a few. It’s a classic, no-frills design that looked good 75 years ago, and will still look just as important in 75 and beyond.
The clean white dial is devoid of any Arabic numerals, the hour markers opt for a slender pill shape, and the minutes opt for simple tick marks. The small date window at 6 o’clock shows the date of the month and is the only area marked with numbers.
The minute and hour hands are slender but striking, with a white stripe in the center of the hands. This would have been a perfect spot to include a thin strip of luminous paint, I guess the only reason for the lack of luminous on this watch is to keep the color scheme consistent.I have lumens on almost every other watch, and Do It tends to be a greenish off-white in light. I get it, form trumps function, but personally I would like at least something to see time in a dim or dark room.
You’ll immediately notice the big silver hand with a red ring at the tip. This is the second hand of the stopwatch function, which we will cover later.
There are two large subdials at 3 and 9 o’clock. The left sub-dial records the elapsed minutes of the stopwatch, and the right sub-dial has a second hand, which continuously counts the time in seconds.
You’ll notice that the left sub-dial hand has a matching red tip as a visual cue that it’s a companion to the large stopwatch hand.
In addition to the prominent Nordgreen Copenhagen logo at 12 o’clock, it also covers the design of the face.
I’m not sure how I feel about the difference between the markings on the left and the white sub-dial. I think I’d prefer them to match, they both have 60 ticks just for symmetry, but I guess it does provide some extra interest to look at the whole face.
Nordgreen Pioneer chronograph case in gunmetal grey brushed stainless steel. I like brushed metal over polished metal because it hides the inevitable wear and scratches better and is generally less “flashy” than a highly polished case. The metal three-link bracelet that comes with the watch matches the case and is quite comfortable. I’m happy to find it works great out of the box with some extra links.
Removing the links from a metal bracelet isn’t too bad if you have the right tools, but it might be easier to take it to the watch counter of a jeweler or department store, as they may fit your watch band. free.
Also worth noting is that the straps that come with Nordgreen are quick release. The pins that hold the strap to the lugs have a small knob that lets you compress the pins and remove the entire strap in seconds. This is a common feature of modern watch straps, so changing the strap is a trivial matter.
The Nordgreen Pioneer Chronograph case has a nice logo on the back, a logo for the model of the watch and some extra information around the back of the case.
There’s no window to see the inner workings of the watch itself, but since it’s powered by a Japanese quartz movement, you won’t see all the interesting gears and mainspring that exist in a mechanical or automatic watch, so that’s fine.
Looking at the front of the watch, the crown is at 3 o’clock, and there are two matching steel pushers at 2 and 4 o’clock. The top button starts and stops the stopwatch, and the bottom button resets the stopwatch minute and second hands.
The sapphire glass is domed, which provides some extra interest and smoothness compared to the flat glass embedded in the surrounding bezel. I love it, the dome look refracts the light that shines through it and has some interesting effects on the face in sunlight.
The overall width of the Nordgreen Pioneer Chronograph is 42mm, and the case thickness is almost 12mm, which feels a bit too large for me. For comparison in the photo, my wrist (probably quite thin) is 7.25 inches, and 42mm is probably as big as my personal size.Having said so much, I don’t feel like also Big on my wrist.
Strap size is typically 20mm, and given the quick-change nature of the included metal 3-link bracelet, changing the strap is quick and easy. No tools are required.
I have quite a few 20mm straps and change them every few days while wearing the Pioneer. Not surprisingly, given the minimalist design and color scheme of the dial, this watch looks great with a variety of straps.
It’s amazing how quickly the overall tone of the watch changes, and a quick strap change can take it from business/formal to weekend casual. Personally, my favorite is the leather strap with threaded accents.
In the end, the Pioneer has very little to say about waterproofing. At 5 ATM, that would put the watch in the category of “wash your hands or deal with some raindrops, but don’t drown.” I wish it was a little better than that, but then again, it’s not a dive watch or something you’d wear to the beach and survive a quick dunk or spill without getting water under the glass.
Feature
The Pioneer is a chronograph, so it has a simplified stopwatch function.I say “simplified” because many other chronographs out there have extra sub-dials to track the minutes and hours, and has units of measure around the bezel to track miles or kilometers per hour and fuel usage, which is great for racing or flying.
This chronograph measures seconds and minutes, nothing more, but I believe it still counts as a useful tool built into the wrist. I use the stopwatch feature to keep track of when I make tea bags, track my child’s reading time, and a host of other time-critical activities. I was pleasantly surprised by how convenient it is to have a stopwatch that can be triggered with a quick press.
Resetting the stopwatch with the lower plate causes the second hand to zoom back to the 12 o’clock position around the entire dial and flips the tracked minutes back to zero.
Really, it’s the convenience factor that does it for me. Granted, a smartwatch or phone can easily start a stopwatch, but it’s often hidden in apps that require multiple taps. For me, a bare presser on my wrist that I can use without even having to look is much quicker.
Since the Nordgreen Pioneer Chronograph has a quartz movement, it remains “charged” without having to wind or wear the watch.I believe the battery should last a few years and keep Very exact time. In my experience, most quartz movement watches I own only gain or lose half a second per day, while my mechanical or automatic watches tend to be around +/- 3 to 5 seconds per day.
what do I like
- Clean, Versatile Surface and Housing Design
- The stopwatch function is a handy feature
- Quick change straps
Areas for improvement
- Lume on the minute/hour hand
- More water resistance would be nice
final thoughts
Overall, the Nordgreen Pioneer Chronograph is a beautiful addition to my growing collection of watches. Its minimalist design is suitable for fancy or casual wear, and the quick release shoulder strap system is perfect for changing the look. The price is just right for those looking for more of a “mature” watch with timeless style.
Price: $314 (with 3-Link Bracelet Strap)
where to buy: You can buy this Pioneer watch variant, exactly like the review, Direct from Nordegren. Nordgreen has many other Pioneer’s in surface color, case color and strap variations. The type of strap affects the total cost.Check The complete collection is here.
resource: Samples of this product are provided by Nordegren.
